-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Four human rights organizations are urging authorities in the United Arab Emirates to drop charges against five pro-democracy activists .

Court proceedings against the five men wrapped up Monday and are scheduled to resume July 25 .

They face charges of public insult against the president of the UAE and other top officials , the groups said in a statement .

All five defendants have pleaded not guilty .

The four groups jointly calling for charges to be dropped are Amnesty International , the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information -LRB- ANHRI -RRB- , Front Line Defenders and Human Rights Watch .

The groups accuse UAE authorities of misusing the defamation charges `` as a pretext '' to punish the activists for peacefully expressing their opinions , they said in a statement .

`` We consider all five men prisoners of conscience and call on the UAE authorities to release them unconditionally , '' said Philip Luther , Middle East and North Africa deputy director at Amnesty International .

Other charges against the men , who police detained in April , include undermining the public order and opposing the government system .

They have been `` held in preventative custody , '' according to UAE 's state news agency WAM .

The best-known of the five activists on trial is Ahmed Mansour Ali Abdullah Al Abd Al Shehi , more commonly known as Ahmed Mansour .

He is a `` leading human rights activist who had publicly called for political freedoms and an elected parliament , '' Human Rights Watch said . Mansour also is a member of Human Rights Watch 's Middle East advisory committee .

Mansour `` faces additional charges for inciting others to break the law , calling for an election boycott , and for demonstrations , '' the four groups said .

On trial with him are economist Nasser Ahmed Khalfan bin Gaith , Fahad Salim Mohammed Salim Dalk , Hassan Ali Al Khamis -- all of the United Arab Emirates -- and Ahmed Abdul Khaleq , who `` does not carry identification papers , '' state news reported .

All were arrested on the heels of a recent decision by the UAE 's government to dissolve the elected board of directors of the Jurist Association , a prominent civil rights organization in that country , and replace it with state appointees , according to Human Rights Watch .

The Jurist Association was one of four nongovernmental organizations that sent a petition in March 2011 to UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and other authorities asking for direct elections .

Ahmed Mansour signed the petition , which also demanded authorities turn over legislative powers to a representative body known as the Federal National Council , which exercises an advisory function .

FNC elections are scheduled for September , according to state media .

Authorities justified the sacking of the association 's elected board , saying it had violated a law banning nongovernmental organizations from interfering `` in politics or in matters that impair state security and -LRB- the -RRB- ruling regime . ''

Human Rights Watch has accused UAE authorities of acting against its own free speech guarantees as well as those propagated by regional and international provisions .

The UAE are `` reacting to domestic criticisms by banning websites , detaining peaceful activists and intensifying its chokehold on civil society , '' Human Rights Watch claims .

The country has not faced street protests , but authorities are sensitive to the unrest sweeping the Arab world .

Long-standing regimes in Tunisia and Egypt were toppled earlier this year , and Damascus has launched a violent crackdown against protesters in Syria .

Libya is currently in the midst of a full-blown war involving supporters and opponents of strongman Moammar Gadhafi .

Both the UAE and Saudi Arabia recently sent troops to nearby Bahrain to help quell an uprising there .

While concerned with rising ethnic and sectarian strife in the region , authorities in the UAE also have to contend with potentially explosive immigration concerns . More than 8 million people live in the UAE , but Emiratis account for only 11.5 % of that total .

Migrant workers comprise the bulk of the population in the country .

Jenifer Fenton contributed to this report

@highlight

They face charges of public insult against the president

@highlight

Human Rights Watch accuses the UAE of misusing the law to persecute free speech

@highlight

UAE authorities have not seen street protests but helped fight protesters in Bahrain

@highlight

All five defendants have pleaded not guilty ; their trial resumes Monday